In less than two weeks we are delivering the programme for SPECTRA – Aberdeen’s festival of Light. Following the huge success of Aberdeen’s first festival of light in 2014, SPECTRA returns to shine light across the city with a series of exciting events and installations running for four days from 19 February.
This week Andy Brydon, Artistic Director of SPECTRA told Neil Drysdale at STV what to expect in Union Terrace Gardens:

Festival chief promises magical light display in city gardens

By Neil Drysdale on Wednesday 4 February 2015

Andy Brydon isn't one of life's elitists. Quite the contrary.

This is a man who believes in bringing art to as wide a community as possible, on the basis that there's no point having an inspired idea if nobody else knows about it. He's the artistic director of SPECTRA, the Festival of Light which excited so many people, locals and visitors alike, when it illuminated Aberdeen last winter. And it is only two weeks until the event returns in a blaze of pyrotechnics, innovative ideas and lustrous luminosity. Andy and his colleagues have just launched their website, which highlights the range of spectacles which will be on show from February 19 to 22. And he spoke to STV about the little tweaks which he and his colleagues have implemented to ensure this year's event is even better.

Andy told us: "Aberdeen City Council has invited us to take over Union Terrace Gardens to build on the success of 2014 and that gives us the opportunity to build more of a festival site. "It's a fantastic venue, a part of the city which has earned praise from so many different people and basing SPECTRA in and around the Gardens is a real thrill for us. "We have brought together artists from Scotland, England, Norway, Denmark, the Faroe Islands, Iceland, Spain and Austria, and the aim is to produce some new collaborations. "We hope the event brings some luminous magic to the centre of Aberdeen and gives a chance for local, national and international talent to shine"

This year's programme includes a wide range of diverse projects, including Hidden People Workshop, Tagtool Workshops, Projections With Fluids and Apparition. Many of the events have been based around the themes of "Fire, Ice and Water"; compelling themes which have allowed the participating artists plenty of scope to express themselves. In the midst of the winter, the north-east of Scotland can often be a dark and rather gloomy place. But Andy is determined that the city will be bathed in an all-pervading light once SPECTRA springs to life.

After the success of our first Secret Cities: Immersion workshop our project and collaborator Andrew Brooks have been featured as one of the Spotlights on Manchester Central Library‘s LibraryLive. As with Brooks' images the workshops enables participants to see and explore their home city with fresh eyes:

“Sometimes with a city, particularly one you live in, you think you’ve seen it all. But by digging a little deeper, climbing a fence or doing some research, we’ve found so many strange places and odd situations that we never knew existed.” - Andrew Brooks

We are busy planning our next photography workshop – themed Landscapes – which will take place in the Peak Districts' beautiful Edale on the 2nd of August. Book now, it's free! Following up with a Photoshop session back in Manchester in the Central Library’s impressive Media Lounge few days later. More workshops will be taking place in Manchester and will be announced soon. Follow the project on Twitter and Facebook to be the first to know.

His work through our Collaborative Compositions programme sees him recognised as "New Voice who has made the most of effective collaboration" amongst a roster of incredibly impressive peers. We intend to have more where that came from throughout 2014 as we extend the programme to Norway, Sweden, Iceland and the UK with Collaborative Compositions 2014.

Check out the exhibition curated by Martin Scheuregger for Sound and Music bringing together and showcasing some of the most exciting composers and sound artists in the UK right now.

I'm currently over in the Netherlands installing the exhibition at Museum Het Domein in Sittard-Geleen. It's a step into the public realm for the project too seeing the 15 new shots being installed both in the Gallery of the museum and on a series of giant billboards around the municipality.

Can't wait to see the reactions to Andrew's artwork taking the place of advertising out in the wild.

Secret Cities opens at the Museum Het Domein, Sittard-Geleen on Friday, August 23 until February 2014.